Density-dependent changes in the distribution of Southern Right Whales ( Eubalaena australis ) in the breeding ground Peninsula Valdés

PeerJ

article

Nicolas Sueyro¹  Enrique Alberto Crespo¹  Magdalena Arias³  Mariano Alberto Coscarella¹ 

[1] Laboratorio de Mamíferos Marinos;Facultad de Ciencias Naturales y Ciencias de la Salud, Universidad Nacional de la Patagonia San Juan Bosco;Centro de Investigación Aplicada y Transferencia Tecnológica en Recursos Marinos Almirante Storni

关键词: Southern Right Whales;    Density-dependent;    Distribution change;    Peninsula Valdés;    Eubalaena australis;   

DOI  :  10.7717/peerj.5957

学科分类：社会科学、人文和艺术（综合）

来源: Inra

【 摘 要 】

Background The Southern Right Whale (Eubalaena australis) population of the South–western Atlantic Ocean is recovering. In the breeding ground of Peninsula Valdés, as a consequence of the population growth, expansion to new areas by some types of groups and a change in the habitat use patterns at the coastal area were recorded. Methods We analysed information gathered from aerial surveys conducted along the coast of Peninsula Valdés in 15 years of effective sampling in a 19-year span. These surveys were divided into four periods (1999–2000; 2004–2007; 2008–2012 and 2013–2016) and estimated the density of whales in a 620 km of coast divided into segments of five km. Results The density of the whales increased to near three whales per km2 (averaged over each period) in the high-density areas. When this mean number was reached, the significant changes in density in the adjacent areas were detected in the following period. These changes were a decrease in density in the high-density areas and an increase of density in the low-density areas. Discussion We propose that a threshold in density elicits a response in habitat use, with the Mother-calf pairs remaining in the area, while the other groups are displaced to new areas.

【 授权许可】

CC BY